Astoria City Hall (old)

The first Astoria city hall was designed and built in 1878 by Albert W. Ferguson. His son's firm of Ferguson & Houston also built the second building, located at 16th and Exchange streets, but the building's design was by Emil Schacht. The new building would be larger than its predecessor, as well as more modern. Construction began in 1904 and was completed in June 1905. The second Astoria City Hall was formally dedicated on July 4, 1905. All city offices, as well as the city library, were located in the new building. In the 1930s, it was decided to move city hall to a location in downtown, as the location at 16th and Exchange streets was rather isolated; the original, 1878 city hall had also been located in downtown Astoria. The city offices were moved out of the Old Astoria City Hall on Exchange Street, into the new premises, at the end of March 1939. ==Later use==

Since the end of its function as city hall, the two-story building has been put to various other uses. In the 1940s, the city allowed the State of Oregon to use it as an annex to an armory built at that time and located just to the east. Later, the U.S.O. used the building as its local headquarters. It moved out in 1960, leaving the building vacant. In 1963, the building was turned into the first Columbia River Maritime Museum, which opened in August of that year. It served this purpose for almost 20 years, until that museum moved to a new location on the riverfront, in 1982. To avoid confusion with the existing Astoria City Hall, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department identifies the building as "Astoria City Hall (Old)" in its list of registered historic properties in Oregon. In 1980, members of the Clatsop County Historical Society voted to purchase the Old City Hall and renovate it for use as a museum. The purchase was completed in 1985, opened in 1985. Interior renovation and exterior restoration were carried out in 1987–88, funded by private grants and donations. ==See also==